John Pavlovitz has recently written a post intended to convey grace......
But it is a dangerous grace........
A grace accepting grace without advancing it........
It is a stagnant pool that only receives without allowing the flow of waters beyond it........
It is a selfish view of grace.......
And, not so surprisingly, it resulted in a caustic response in the comments below (not attributed to Pavlovitz, of course, but 'toxic grace' does indeed draw out such caustic responses....):
Hoax
The great hoax
foisted by religion
has been
the infallibility
of its doctrines
To which I responded:
a great turn of words.... but.....
The greatest hoax foisted by the flesh is.....
That those infallibly true truths can't be misunderstood by the soul......
Of course they are! By ourselves as well as by those who have led before us (or who are leading us now)..........
The thing that is John Pavlovitz's article is missing?
Grace..............
Which is the cure...........
You see, grace coming into us is not enough.
We must step onto the platform of grace for those around us.... even for those in leadership, who have led us, or are leading us, who have similar types of misconceptions of true doctrines (maybe not the very same ones..... but an inability to see straight..... which we also struggle with,..... no?!....)
Oh, the words might all be properly thought out.
The foundation of them might be properly established on the Cornerstone.......
But if our vision isn't changed by what we know "properly", perhaps the 'corrective lens of scripture' isn't sitting squarely on our faces..........
...........so we still see life and living........ all askew.........
........ we still see amiss........
So, if we hope to receive grace for ourselves for such skewed vision........
How is it that we should not receive grace to share with those who have, or are --- leading us in the wrong direction.
.....
When we really step up onto the platform of grace? Then we can dive deeply into the living water.... the flowing, alive, fresh, life-giving water of grace.......
When we really step up onto that platform of grace? For the whole body of Christ......
When we are really praying from the depth of our beings:
"OUR Father......."
Then it is that the healing begins..........
But not until then...........
.
Sunday, July 3, 2016
Friday, June 24, 2016
Clinging to Our God and Father........
"In the world, dependence is seen as immaturity. But in My kingdom, dependence on Me is a prime measure of maturity." --- or so Sarah Young attributes these thoughts to God's precious heart in her devotional Jesus Calling, in her entry for today, June 24.
......and methinks, she is right.
Or course, Sarah Young also included encouraging and insightful scriptures for the day..... one being found in Psalm 62..... Now, I love it when I can take the time to read through the whole chapter or so in which these scriptural references are found, particularly when a psalm is involved. Today, I was blessed to be able to do so...... asking questions along the way.
Today, I happened to scan my way through the psalm first, and found the whole thing to be so peace-giving and restful in regards to us, God's people - in spite of the trials of this life. And against this peaceful foreground of "life at rest in spite of trouble," is the main setting: the grand, and amazing, and powerful love of God for all of His people.
That alone is rich...... But then my curiosity was piqued when I noticed out of the corner of my eye that the author was Jeduthun. Hmmm.... 'think, think, think....." Who is Jeduthun? As it, of course, turns out, Jeduthun was a major figure in David's day, in spite of the fact that he did not play a big part in any stories told to me as a child. Furthermore, in these more recent years, his name had not made an impression on my heart when I have been reading through scriptures. So I did not place his name quickly, yet here he was, so honored as to have written this amazing psalm captured in holy writ. Driven by a growing sense of curiosity, I searched in Biblegateway for his name in scripture.
It was so exciting to see that this Levite, who had been raised up by King David to lead in thanksgiving, praise, and worship in the temple, wrote such a beautiful psalm...., one which captures so much of the heart of Sarah Young's message for today: relying utterly on God in order to reach the fullness of maturity into which He has called us.
It was also exciting to notice how it is that his sons served with him in the temple worship. Some of them kept the gates..... Yes, they kept the gates while he led the people in worship.
Hmmmm, the sons keeping the gates while the father leads in worship.
How beautiful is that!
How often does that happen today? How often does it not? How often do we fail our heavenly Father by failing to properly raise up our sons as He fathered and raised up Jeduthun, and as Jeduthun did as he fathered and raised up his own sons?
What is it that 'went right' for this to have happened in Jeduthun's life?
Of course, being a huge fan of the messages in scripture that can be found by knowing the meanings of names in the Bible....... and in seeking to meditate on these particular scriptures, and especially in seeking leading from the Holy Spirit, I sought to know more of this man, Jeduthun, by learning about his name!
There are two main roots to the name Jeduthun. As it turns out, like the name Judas/Judah, at the heart of the name Jeduthun is the holy name of God: confess....God!
The HAW Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament provides a slightly more expanded version of 'Confess - - God!' by rendering the meaning of Judah as:
"to acknowledge or confess sin, God's character and works, or man's character."
Consider then how appropriate it is that this man who was raised up to lead God's people in praise had a name which gave Jeduthun an opportunity to remember our need to do this each time he heard his own name!
Consider then also, how Jeduthun's sons knew that they ought to grow up worthy of their father's good name..... not to the perfection of their father! Oh, no! For their father, they knew, had to confess his own nature, which was not sufficient for life, to God in worship. But the good name of their father came from the fact that he humbly did just that. Jeduthun did 'acknowledge and confess sin, God's character and works, and man's character.'
Jeduthun's sons must have had at least some very real understanding of our need to 'Confess... God!'. They also seem to have been very faithful in the task set to them. They understood that they needed to be keepers at the gate, protecting those who were attending to this vital need in our lives!
Were Jeduthun's sons 'tending to their father's business?'
It does indeed seem that they were.
What an honor for them all.
Now, may we be about the Heavenly Father's business........
Leading out before the people, 'Confessing....God!', and loving them, helping them to understand the love, peace, and honor that comes from their choosing to do the same.......
As Jeduthun said so poignantly in his psalm:
'Yes, my soul, find rest in God;
my hope comes from him
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honor depend on God;
he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in him at all times, you people;
pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge.' Psalm 62:5-8
What else can we do than to repeat this sentiment down through the ages? Even to those who have failed with their own children in days past.... What else can we do for those around us today? What else can those around us do?
Each one of us will either cling to the good name of Our Heavenly Father, and stand and watch the gates as needed, and thereby cling to the gift of His Son..... the gift of life......
Or we have nothing with which to cling onto anything at all.........
Which truth is said so well at the end of Psalm 62:
"One thing God has spoken,
two things I have heard:
'Power belongs to you, God,
and with you, Lord, is unfailing love';
and, 'You reward everyone
according to what they have done.'"
What an amazing thing.... that when God has spoken one thing..... we indeed must hear two!
Confess...... God! In.....deed.........
......
Friday, June 10, 2016
Evangelism.... and Legalism....... and........ a solution........
Hmmm, today, in my inbox, I found a link to an article written about complaining and its perceived relationship with evangelism, an article whose author had come to the conclusion that, as some would put it:
"If you wanna complain, you gotta evangelize first."
Some valid points in that. Obedience in spite of problem is of high value. Furthermore, the problem addressed by the article is very real......... I mean, it is utterly true that:
Even a spiritual infant can evangelize! And it is important not just to notice when it happens, but it is important to understand that every single believer is able to stand in the light given to each of us, that each one of us can begin living out the great commission right away - at least in little ways right away. Of course, that should continue throughout our lives, even as we each strive to mature more and more fully in the Lord.
But putting even a well meaning guideline into such terms creates a dictum. Many a dictum has led many a heart, and even many a church, into many a breed of legalism. Things haven't changed much in that aspect yet. Even today, many a dictum can lead many a heart into many a breed of legalism yet again. One question which arises, then, is simply this: How ought church leadership respond to complaining?
As for complaining itself: Much 'complaining' has to do with church functioning. Much of the sort of complaining which was being discussed at the above mentioned link is about how the church functions, or fails to do so, and is expressed by immature members among the laity. Hate it! But.........: Been there. Joined them in that. Heard others go there. Hate it even more now! --- I hope and pray that I've left all that in my past. But I need God's grace to accomplish such a task day by day.
.........
That said, first off, and this is my premise: orderly, and might I add, non-dysfunctional church functioning does indeed promote evangelism. Thus, the immature complaining being addressed by the article in question specifically by the above mentioned laity, while they do not realize it, is actually driving the attention where it ought to have already been.
I mean, back when the Israelites were complaining...... that is to say, *after* the Israelites were complaining, Moses would go and pray for their needs. Then God would intervene and provide for those needs, and, sometimes, He would also apply any needed corrections for the edification of those present who were of faith at that time and for the edification of those who are of faith now.
Hmmm, how to put this. In my own life, God has been teaching me about specificity in prayer. As one dear young lady, a friend of mine, very simply put it, "God already knows what we need, He just likes us to ask Him." She was right. He does like us to ask Him. He even likes us to ask Him in specifics. So the question of when to pray, and what to pray comes to mind. Obviously, the answer has everything to do with the leading of the Holy Spirit.
In my own case, the Holy Spirit had been challenging me to pray with more specificity for some time.... first more subtly, and later, quite obviously. Those around me would occasionally hear my confessions that I knew I had not prayed enough. Perhaps the nodding of heads, along with a sense that we all know we could and should all pray more, lulled me into a relative complacency. While, on the one hand, I sought to grow in prayer, on the other hand, I knew down deep inside that I was not growing in prayer as much as I should. Sometimes, I would pray specifically, but not broadly enough (such as the times when I would ask God to protect my children from spider bites, yet He allowed them to bite me......, with yet another reminder to be more specific........). Sometimes those I should be ministering to have 'gone without', at least for a time, because I did not pray about some specific need or other, either in at all, or with the specificity that God has been calling me to. Nor did I do enough to teach those I ministered to pray for those needs....., though that is a complicated issue (which is a whole 'nuther book......).
As for prayer - and the story of Moses praying for God's people as mentioned above: Perhaps, before the veil was rent, it was the job of the priestly family to do the praying for everyone else. Perhaps, even in Moses' day, the people should not have been taught to bring their petitions before God themselves. However, perhaps they should have been taught to
As an example of dysfunction in just one type of church-organization:
In too many of the churches, or portions of churches, where discipleship evangelism is being preached, but not implemented as preached (in particular: helping the young/infant/children type of Christians grow in the Lord and become 'spiritual adults' - which should, of course, include evangelism in varying ways at all stages of development), there is a growing confusion which is impacting the church's ability to coordinate around evangelism.
If the goal in discipleship-focused churches is supposedly "to raise up discipleship groups that produce discipleship groups" *in order to reach others for Christ and draw them into a discipleship environment*, but the emphasis *in practice* focuses on efforts to reproduce more groups (thereby 'demonstrating' evangelism), all without real discipleship going on (with 'real discipleship' meaning: actually helping all of the spiritual infants and youth who have a teachable spirit learn from a spiritual parent; which would necessarily include spiritual parents helping the 'younger' believers who are less 'goal oriented' learn how to break down bigger goals-about-maturing-in-various-ways into manageable bites --- manageable specifically for them......, guiding them *at the developmental level of the child/youth not only spiritually, but functionally as well* - errrrr..... all of which can be a daunting task..... I mean, being a parent of a child/youth who does not function the way the parent does is never easy --- it takes prayer over time to learn from Our Heavenly Father just how to parent any. one. child., let alone a whole family of varying types of children, or a whole small group of varying types of disciples....... - something which is more difficult, perhaps, for goal oriented pastors to picture..... Really: how does a goal oriented pastor and/or 'spiritual parent' deal with many less *naturally* goal oriented laity/infants-children - especially when you include 'the least of these, my brethren' - which would include the developmentally challenged .... err.... might I put it in the terms of those who have visual impairments, which means that they don't see what you think they see........... in either small or significant ways...... after all, many children need rather specialized parenting - -- something that any true and committed parent can learn how to do through prayer, if they will devote themselves fully to pray, with all fervency),....
.......anyway, in the midst of parental dysfunction (a parent not knowing how to parent - and thus a parent devolving into the ruins of legalism), the obvious hypocrisy of not doing what you teach confuses the spiritual youth, making it difficult for them to *want* to bring in others to that sort of confusion. For them to do so would be like saying, "Hey, do you want to come and be built up in a state of confusion with me? Don't you want to come with me and be brought into a family where you are expected to perform without being taught how to perform!!!???? Won't that be fun!??? Then we can be confused, miserable, and utterly shamed by our parents together!!!!! Woohoo!!!"
For the youth/infants to do so would require maturing faith...... which God can grant, and does at times.
However, for a 'parent' to expect their infants and youth to apply such mature faith, without walking in that path *directly with them*, and then for that same parent to judge them from the sideline, would be like expecting children to go to their school, pick up their books, and do their lessons without being taught.
Seeing the reasonable frustration and even anger of the child leaves one thinking of the verse:
"Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart."
........
That said, a few people can actually survive an academic arena with little to no instruction.
However, in the business world, and in the schools, it is very clear that most people cannot grow without hands on training in knowledge, academic skills, wisdom, or in job performance.
Think about it. It's so simple: Most people are not so innovative that they can devise 'best practice' on their own, let alone *implement* established best practice on their own.
Most people don't want to innovate best practice. And most people don't even begin to think about how to implement best practice for themselves.
Yes, Christians do have the Holy Spirit to guide them, but even Paul said, "Do as you have *seen me do*."
Again, through fervent prayer, people can figure out how to implement instructions in solo fashion - or as a group, with or without verbal/video instruction......, but is that the way things *should* be?
If we look at a 'family' or even a 'corporate body', clearly that is not how things should be.
That is not how families or bodies work in the real world any more than it is how they work in the spiritual world.
Criticizing the untrained youth and children is destructive (and some church leadership does criticize their untrained youth and children - and even untrained adults to some extent....... all without offering training........ all quite literally).
........
In summary:
Only a very few people can actually grow in the spiritual arena with little to no tutoring by simply working off of the list of to-do's, because they are goal oriented types of people. I mean, they can even take the 'to do' of leaning on the Holy Spirit very seriously. Viola! Success! (for a few......)
However, most people cannot do that - whatever type of church organization is being embraced by a local body.
If we want our churches to evangelize more broadly, we as a church need to use an orderly means of following our Head, that is Christ, - an orderly means that we will actually live out together, whatever that model is.
If we want to encourage those in the pews to grow spiritually, keep our first love, and thereby reach the lost, we can't afford to take short cuts in implementing orderly growth, internally, and externally. (properly taking care of one's own body, and then using that body to tend to the garden as it were)
R. C. Sproul spoke about the organization of the church being so necessary. Some complain about organization, wanting to be free to simply worship God, rather than being caught up in religion. So they run off on their own. (a different type of choice which also fails to evangelize..... illustrating the fact that the 'body' should evangelize......., even though, sometimes, individuals do......... but mostly, only if they are truly connected to a body ............... )
Anyway, R.C. Sproul's response to those who are tired of religious organization, so they decry organization is simply that any 'body' that is not organized will not live long. -------- soooo well said........
While I'm not meaning to imply that you, Thom S. Rainer, are seeking to short circuit more order to the body (obviously not)...... I am saying that some might hear your words here, and use them to add to a stronghold that they have already been fashioning to protect themselves from the truth........to protect their legalistic hypocrisy.
That said, if a body has an orderly plan, but cannot live by that plan because they are worshiping the god of 'evangelism first' & only *really* the gospel presentation - not the gospel *function* - all at the expense of working the orderly plan......, then, not surprisingly, disorder occurs..... and..... well........
Well, let's just say that one would necessarily see that the body is experiencing spasms which are not profitable for the body, nor for the lost.
It's just a terrible state of confusion.
Those in leadership in such spasmodic churches will likely not see clearly on that subject, because those in the church nearest them are in a functioning relationship with them..., so the fault is though, necessarily, to be 'their fault'...... (whose fault?: why of course! It's the fault of .........the infants and children.......! What?????!!!!! --- because they are not functioning like the adults who are close to the church leadership......... )
Of course infants and youth do not function like adults, especially when they are mostly left to themselves to follow instructions.
When the above truths are understood and established as the paradigm from which we look back on the first gospel efforts, Christianity grew like wildfire back in the days of Rome because it was a religion for the plebes (.... errr..... might I suggest: for the spiritually dead, the spiritual infants, and the spiritual youth)....., not just those close to the leadership team.
FWIW, in the case of a breakdown between leadership and the laity (or the parents and the infants), simply stating that no one should complain unless they have evangelized first, is a bit of an oversimplification.........
That's like saying that children who have merely seen "the video" or heard "the lecture", or have even been to the small group "discussion" should necessarily be able to go out on their own and do whatever task is set before them. Any large family who implemented such practice with all of their children, and then sent their children off individually to implement their new knowledge set, would find that many of their children simply do not 'see' everything they were shown through the video, lecture, or discussion.
Until the eye can see what is to be done, ......... well, there is no light.
"But if your vision is poor, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!"
Not to say that evangelism should stop, just because the local body is experiencing seizures and/or even darkness, but seizures/darkness should hardly be ignored "for the sake of evangelizing" (again, not that you are arguing for that, but some, upon hearing your words, would add to the fortress walls which protect their hypocrisy).......
..........
The Great Commission, that is to say, Evangelism.....: Yes, evangelism itself, according to the Great Commission, does indeed include making disciples in an organized church body (parenting the little ones very, very directly, one way or another).
That was supposed to be the whole point of the small group movement. It's a great idea. But any idea implemented without grace will run into ruin.
Therefore, the solution here must begin with grace........ and parents are the ones who should set the tone for grace......... sometimes children do......... but that is not how it should be..........
So, in summary, some of those who decry any complaints about such 'seizures' as those mentioned above (or other types of 'seizures' in other styles of church organization) - without emphasizing evangelizing first, simply want to continue the hypocrisy in their own leadership......., and complain about the results of that legalism/hypocrisy.
What that would mean is that children cannot complain if they have gone into shut down (as some children do when they are asked to do a task which is beyond them at the moment), until they have gotten *themselves* out of shut down.
Such complaints against those who have 'shut down' for whatever reason will not produce the fruit of true evangelism.
Rather, grace, ........... true grace........ that is the place where evangelism begins........
Thanking God for grace already received! Praising God for grace past, present, and future! And seeking grace in all things........ in all moments........ for all people..........
Those people with whom we have a grievance both in and out of the church.
Those people whom we love, with whom God has a grievance, both in and out of the church........
And foremost...... seeking grace, each of us more every day....... that we may grow in grace....... His kind of grace........ His actual grace............ grace abounding more and more in all things......
Which would indeed obliterate complaining, and which would indeed produce fruit unto salvation...... in our own lives, and in the lives of the lost.
"If you wanna complain, you gotta evangelize first."
Some valid points in that. Obedience in spite of problem is of high value. Furthermore, the problem addressed by the article is very real......... I mean, it is utterly true that:
Even a spiritual infant can evangelize! And it is important not just to notice when it happens, but it is important to understand that every single believer is able to stand in the light given to each of us, that each one of us can begin living out the great commission right away - at least in little ways right away. Of course, that should continue throughout our lives, even as we each strive to mature more and more fully in the Lord.
But putting even a well meaning guideline into such terms creates a dictum. Many a dictum has led many a heart, and even many a church, into many a breed of legalism. Things haven't changed much in that aspect yet. Even today, many a dictum can lead many a heart into many a breed of legalism yet again. One question which arises, then, is simply this: How ought church leadership respond to complaining?
As for complaining itself: Much 'complaining' has to do with church functioning. Much of the sort of complaining which was being discussed at the above mentioned link is about how the church functions, or fails to do so, and is expressed by immature members among the laity. Hate it! But.........: Been there. Joined them in that. Heard others go there. Hate it even more now! --- I hope and pray that I've left all that in my past. But I need God's grace to accomplish such a task day by day.
.........
That said, first off, and this is my premise: orderly, and might I add, non-dysfunctional church functioning does indeed promote evangelism. Thus, the immature complaining being addressed by the article in question specifically by the above mentioned laity, while they do not realize it, is actually driving the attention where it ought to have already been.
I mean, back when the Israelites were complaining...... that is to say, *after* the Israelites were complaining, Moses would go and pray for their needs. Then God would intervene and provide for those needs, and, sometimes, He would also apply any needed corrections for the edification of those present who were of faith at that time and for the edification of those who are of faith now.
Hmmm, how to put this. In my own life, God has been teaching me about specificity in prayer. As one dear young lady, a friend of mine, very simply put it, "God already knows what we need, He just likes us to ask Him." She was right. He does like us to ask Him. He even likes us to ask Him in specifics. So the question of when to pray, and what to pray comes to mind. Obviously, the answer has everything to do with the leading of the Holy Spirit.
In my own case, the Holy Spirit had been challenging me to pray with more specificity for some time.... first more subtly, and later, quite obviously. Those around me would occasionally hear my confessions that I knew I had not prayed enough. Perhaps the nodding of heads, along with a sense that we all know we could and should all pray more, lulled me into a relative complacency. While, on the one hand, I sought to grow in prayer, on the other hand, I knew down deep inside that I was not growing in prayer as much as I should. Sometimes, I would pray specifically, but not broadly enough (such as the times when I would ask God to protect my children from spider bites, yet He allowed them to bite me......, with yet another reminder to be more specific........). Sometimes those I should be ministering to have 'gone without', at least for a time, because I did not pray about some specific need or other, either in at all, or with the specificity that God has been calling me to. Nor did I do enough to teach those I ministered to pray for those needs....., though that is a complicated issue (which is a whole 'nuther book......).
As for prayer - and the story of Moses praying for God's people as mentioned above: Perhaps, before the veil was rent, it was the job of the priestly family to do the praying for everyone else. Perhaps, even in Moses' day, the people should not have been taught to bring their petitions before God themselves. However, perhaps they should have been taught to
As an example of dysfunction in just one type of church-organization:
In too many of the churches, or portions of churches, where discipleship evangelism is being preached, but not implemented as preached (in particular: helping the young/infant/children type of Christians grow in the Lord and become 'spiritual adults' - which should, of course, include evangelism in varying ways at all stages of development), there is a growing confusion which is impacting the church's ability to coordinate around evangelism.
If the goal in discipleship-focused churches is supposedly "to raise up discipleship groups that produce discipleship groups" *in order to reach others for Christ and draw them into a discipleship environment*, but the emphasis *in practice* focuses on efforts to reproduce more groups (thereby 'demonstrating' evangelism), all without real discipleship going on (with 'real discipleship' meaning: actually helping all of the spiritual infants and youth who have a teachable spirit learn from a spiritual parent; which would necessarily include spiritual parents helping the 'younger' believers who are less 'goal oriented' learn how to break down bigger goals-about-maturing-in-various-ways into manageable bites --- manageable specifically for them......, guiding them *at the developmental level of the child/youth not only spiritually, but functionally as well* - errrrr..... all of which can be a daunting task..... I mean, being a parent of a child/youth who does not function the way the parent does is never easy --- it takes prayer over time to learn from Our Heavenly Father just how to parent any. one. child., let alone a whole family of varying types of children, or a whole small group of varying types of disciples....... - something which is more difficult, perhaps, for goal oriented pastors to picture..... Really: how does a goal oriented pastor and/or 'spiritual parent' deal with many less *naturally* goal oriented laity/infants-children - especially when you include 'the least of these, my brethren' - which would include the developmentally challenged .... err.... might I put it in the terms of those who have visual impairments, which means that they don't see what you think they see........... in either small or significant ways...... after all, many children need rather specialized parenting - -- something that any true and committed parent can learn how to do through prayer, if they will devote themselves fully to pray, with all fervency),....
.......anyway, in the midst of parental dysfunction (a parent not knowing how to parent - and thus a parent devolving into the ruins of legalism), the obvious hypocrisy of not doing what you teach confuses the spiritual youth, making it difficult for them to *want* to bring in others to that sort of confusion. For them to do so would be like saying, "Hey, do you want to come and be built up in a state of confusion with me? Don't you want to come with me and be brought into a family where you are expected to perform without being taught how to perform!!!???? Won't that be fun!??? Then we can be confused, miserable, and utterly shamed by our parents together!!!!! Woohoo!!!"
For the youth/infants to do so would require maturing faith...... which God can grant, and does at times.
However, for a 'parent' to expect their infants and youth to apply such mature faith, without walking in that path *directly with them*, and then for that same parent to judge them from the sideline, would be like expecting children to go to their school, pick up their books, and do their lessons without being taught.
Seeing the reasonable frustration and even anger of the child leaves one thinking of the verse:
"Fathers, do not exasperate your children, so that they will not lose heart."
........
That said, a few people can actually survive an academic arena with little to no instruction.
However, in the business world, and in the schools, it is very clear that most people cannot grow without hands on training in knowledge, academic skills, wisdom, or in job performance.
Think about it. It's so simple: Most people are not so innovative that they can devise 'best practice' on their own, let alone *implement* established best practice on their own.
Most people don't want to innovate best practice. And most people don't even begin to think about how to implement best practice for themselves.
Yes, Christians do have the Holy Spirit to guide them, but even Paul said, "Do as you have *seen me do*."
Again, through fervent prayer, people can figure out how to implement instructions in solo fashion - or as a group, with or without verbal/video instruction......, but is that the way things *should* be?
If we look at a 'family' or even a 'corporate body', clearly that is not how things should be.
That is not how families or bodies work in the real world any more than it is how they work in the spiritual world.
Criticizing the untrained youth and children is destructive (and some church leadership does criticize their untrained youth and children - and even untrained adults to some extent....... all without offering training........ all quite literally).
........
In summary:
Only a very few people can actually grow in the spiritual arena with little to no tutoring by simply working off of the list of to-do's, because they are goal oriented types of people. I mean, they can even take the 'to do' of leaning on the Holy Spirit very seriously. Viola! Success! (for a few......)
However, most people cannot do that - whatever type of church organization is being embraced by a local body.
If we want our churches to evangelize more broadly, we as a church need to use an orderly means of following our Head, that is Christ, - an orderly means that we will actually live out together, whatever that model is.
If we want to encourage those in the pews to grow spiritually, keep our first love, and thereby reach the lost, we can't afford to take short cuts in implementing orderly growth, internally, and externally. (properly taking care of one's own body, and then using that body to tend to the garden as it were)
R. C. Sproul spoke about the organization of the church being so necessary. Some complain about organization, wanting to be free to simply worship God, rather than being caught up in religion. So they run off on their own. (a different type of choice which also fails to evangelize..... illustrating the fact that the 'body' should evangelize......., even though, sometimes, individuals do......... but mostly, only if they are truly connected to a body ............... )
Anyway, R.C. Sproul's response to those who are tired of religious organization, so they decry organization is simply that any 'body' that is not organized will not live long. -------- soooo well said........
While I'm not meaning to imply that you, Thom S. Rainer, are seeking to short circuit more order to the body (obviously not)...... I am saying that some might hear your words here, and use them to add to a stronghold that they have already been fashioning to protect themselves from the truth........to protect their legalistic hypocrisy.
That said, if a body has an orderly plan, but cannot live by that plan because they are worshiping the god of 'evangelism first' & only *really* the gospel presentation - not the gospel *function* - all at the expense of working the orderly plan......, then, not surprisingly, disorder occurs..... and..... well........
Well, let's just say that one would necessarily see that the body is experiencing spasms which are not profitable for the body, nor for the lost.
It's just a terrible state of confusion.
Those in leadership in such spasmodic churches will likely not see clearly on that subject, because those in the church nearest them are in a functioning relationship with them..., so the fault is though, necessarily, to be 'their fault'...... (whose fault?: why of course! It's the fault of .........the infants and children.......! What?????!!!!! --- because they are not functioning like the adults who are close to the church leadership......... )
Of course infants and youth do not function like adults, especially when they are mostly left to themselves to follow instructions.
When the above truths are understood and established as the paradigm from which we look back on the first gospel efforts, Christianity grew like wildfire back in the days of Rome because it was a religion for the plebes (.... errr..... might I suggest: for the spiritually dead, the spiritual infants, and the spiritual youth)....., not just those close to the leadership team.
FWIW, in the case of a breakdown between leadership and the laity (or the parents and the infants), simply stating that no one should complain unless they have evangelized first, is a bit of an oversimplification.........
That's like saying that children who have merely seen "the video" or heard "the lecture", or have even been to the small group "discussion" should necessarily be able to go out on their own and do whatever task is set before them. Any large family who implemented such practice with all of their children, and then sent their children off individually to implement their new knowledge set, would find that many of their children simply do not 'see' everything they were shown through the video, lecture, or discussion.
Until the eye can see what is to be done, ......... well, there is no light.
"But if your vision is poor, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!"
Not to say that evangelism should stop, just because the local body is experiencing seizures and/or even darkness, but seizures/darkness should hardly be ignored "for the sake of evangelizing" (again, not that you are arguing for that, but some, upon hearing your words, would add to the fortress walls which protect their hypocrisy).......
..........
The Great Commission, that is to say, Evangelism.....: Yes, evangelism itself, according to the Great Commission, does indeed include making disciples in an organized church body (parenting the little ones very, very directly, one way or another).
That was supposed to be the whole point of the small group movement. It's a great idea. But any idea implemented without grace will run into ruin.
Therefore, the solution here must begin with grace........ and parents are the ones who should set the tone for grace......... sometimes children do......... but that is not how it should be..........
So, in summary, some of those who decry any complaints about such 'seizures' as those mentioned above (or other types of 'seizures' in other styles of church organization) - without emphasizing evangelizing first, simply want to continue the hypocrisy in their own leadership......., and complain about the results of that legalism/hypocrisy.
What that would mean is that children cannot complain if they have gone into shut down (as some children do when they are asked to do a task which is beyond them at the moment), until they have gotten *themselves* out of shut down.
Such complaints against those who have 'shut down' for whatever reason will not produce the fruit of true evangelism.
Rather, grace, ........... true grace........ that is the place where evangelism begins........
Thanking God for grace already received! Praising God for grace past, present, and future! And seeking grace in all things........ in all moments........ for all people..........
Those people with whom we have a grievance both in and out of the church.
Those people whom we love, with whom God has a grievance, both in and out of the church........
And foremost...... seeking grace, each of us more every day....... that we may grow in grace....... His kind of grace........ His actual grace............ grace abounding more and more in all things......
Which would indeed obliterate complaining, and which would indeed produce fruit unto salvation...... in our own lives, and in the lives of the lost.
Wednesday, March 2, 2016
On Peace.......
in the KJV, there are 420 verses in the Bible involve the word 'peace'
in the NASB, there are only 353........ hmmmm.......
THANKSGIVING & PEACE for those who receive it.... (have you received it?)
Luke 1:76-79 [Zecharias's Prophecy]
“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;
77 To give to His people the knowledge of salvation
By the forgiveness of their sins,
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
79 To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.”
THANKSGIVING AND PEACE THAT WE ARE THE CHILDREN OF GOD!!!
Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
(Question: Are *you* each certain that you are a child of God - today? For those of us who are certain: Do we know all we should know about being peacemakers? How can we be peacemakers if we are not walking in peace ourselves? Where does peace begin in our lives? How do we grow in peace? How does that relate to the command to 'be filled with the Spirit' - Ephesians 5:18?)
THANKSGIVING & PEACE BEGIN WHEN WE RECEIVE HIS HEALING POWER: healing in regards to our past, our sin, and our struggles in our own personal lives (e.g. - if nothing else, all believers need to give thanksgiving for being given spiritual life after bringing spiritual death upon ourselves...)
THE WOMAN WITH THE ISSUE OF BLOOD
(QUESTION: What can we learn about walking in peace in regard to the various afflictions we face, or have faced, in regards to our own health or the health of those we love - or even strangers? You know: What about that question: 'what kind of a God is He anyway'? Where does simple faith fit in here? What of the simple command to 'go in peace'? What about any guilt re: any illness any of us might face in light of the traditional thoughts of Jesus'/Job's day about illness, and/or in light of self-inflicted illness/injury? Should the woman proceed with a focus on how she became ill? Why or why not? How or how not? Should the woman proceed in frustration for the delay in her healing? How do the lessons about 'going in peace' in this story compare with the lessons we can learn from the story of the man who was born blind (John 9)? Also, see Romans 8:28...)
25 A woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, 26 and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse— 27 after hearing about Jesus, she came up in the crowd behind Him and touched His [i]cloak. 28 For she thought, “If I just touch His garments, I will get well.” 29 Immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. 30 Immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My garments?” 31 And His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in on You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” 32 And He looked around to see the woman who had done this. 33 But the woman fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. 34 And He said to her,“Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.”
THANKSGIVING & peace IN ACTION;
peace about our need to keep growing today......
(NOTE: Consider this passage in II Peter 1:2-8 as an example of how Paul himself obeyed the command found in Hebrews 10:24 "And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,"
(QUESTION: What do we learn about thanksgiving, praise, grace, and peace..., and what fruit should be produced throughout our response?) II Peter 1:2-8 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence,knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(QUESTION: How does thanksgiving and peace fit together in these two verses?)
Luke 2:14 And on earth peace ***among*** men with whom He is pleased. (NAS)
Matthew 10:34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword."
(QUESTION: Does the following instruction relate only to that point in time, or to today?)
Matthew 10:13 If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace.
THANKSGIVING IN CONFLICT: and......peace with each other
(NOTE: when the church tries to fulfill the 'team discipleship' aspects of Hebrews 10:24 (see above), conflict can arise even more readily...... Why? (or why not?)...... How does that fit in with Titus 2:3-5? "3 Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, 4 so that they may [b]encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, beingsubject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored." ?If anyone around us is struggling more than we are in any given area, are they 'older' or 'younger' than we are *in that area*? How does this next passage fit in with that?)
Mark 9:42-50 42 “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe to stumble, it would be better for him if, with a heavy millstone hung around his neck, he had been cast into the sea. 43 If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire,44 [where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 45 If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell, 46 [where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 47 If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell,48 where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.
THANKSGIVING & PEACE throughout days of persevering - when facing uncertainties of life here on earth.....
II Peter 2:10-14 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and [b]its works will be [c]burned up.
in the NASB, there are only 353........ hmmmm.......
THANKSGIVING & PEACE for those who receive it.... (have you received it?)
Luke 1:76-79 [Zecharias's Prophecy]
“And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
For you will go on before the Lord to prepare His ways;
77 To give to His people the knowledge of salvation
By the forgiveness of their sins,
78 Because of the tender mercy of our God,
With which the Sunrise from on high will visit us,
79 To shine upon those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death,
To guide our feet into the way of peace.”
THANKSGIVING AND PEACE THAT WE ARE THE CHILDREN OF GOD!!!
Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
(Question: Are *you* each certain that you are a child of God - today? For those of us who are certain: Do we know all we should know about being peacemakers? How can we be peacemakers if we are not walking in peace ourselves? Where does peace begin in our lives? How do we grow in peace? How does that relate to the command to 'be filled with the Spirit' - Ephesians 5:18?)
THANKSGIVING & PEACE BEGIN WHEN WE RECEIVE HIS HEALING POWER: healing in regards to our past, our sin, and our struggles in our own personal lives (e.g. - if nothing else, all believers need to give thanksgiving for being given spiritual life after bringing spiritual death upon ourselves...)
THE WOMAN WITH THE ISSUE OF BLOOD
(QUESTION: What can we learn about walking in peace in regard to the various afflictions we face, or have faced, in regards to our own health or the health of those we love - or even strangers? You know: What about that question: 'what kind of a God is He anyway'? Where does simple faith fit in here? What of the simple command to 'go in peace'? What about any guilt re: any illness any of us might face in light of the traditional thoughts of Jesus'/Job's day about illness, and/or in light of self-inflicted illness/injury? Should the woman proceed with a focus on how she became ill? Why or why not? How or how not? Should the woman proceed in frustration for the delay in her healing? How do the lessons about 'going in peace' in this story compare with the lessons we can learn from the story of the man who was born blind (John 9)? Also, see Romans 8:28...)
25 A woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, 26 and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at all, but rather had grown worse— 27 after hearing about Jesus, she came up in the crowd behind Him and touched His [i]cloak. 28 For she thought, “If I just touch His garments, I will get well.” 29 Immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. 30 Immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around in the crowd and said, “Who touched My garments?” 31 And His disciples said to Him, “You see the crowd pressing in on You, and You say, ‘Who touched Me?’” 32 And He looked around to see the woman who had done this. 33 But the woman fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him and told Him the whole truth. 34 And He said to her,“Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace and be healed of your affliction.”
THANKSGIVING & peace IN ACTION;
peace about our need to keep growing today......
(NOTE: Consider this passage in II Peter 1:2-8 as an example of how Paul himself obeyed the command found in Hebrews 10:24 "And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,"
(QUESTION: What do we learn about thanksgiving, praise, grace, and peace..., and what fruit should be produced throughout our response?) II Peter 1:2-8 Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; 3 seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. 4 For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. 5 Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence,knowledge, 6 and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, 7 and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. 8 For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(QUESTION: How does thanksgiving and peace fit together in these two verses?)
Luke 2:14 And on earth peace ***among*** men with whom He is pleased. (NAS)
Matthew 10:34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword."
(QUESTION: Does the following instruction relate only to that point in time, or to today?)
Matthew 10:13 If the house is worthy, give it your blessing of peace. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace.
THANKSGIVING IN CONFLICT: and......peace with each other
(NOTE: when the church tries to fulfill the 'team discipleship' aspects of Hebrews 10:24 (see above), conflict can arise even more readily...... Why? (or why not?)...... How does that fit in with Titus 2:3-5? "3 Older women likewise are to be reverent in their behavior, not malicious gossips nor enslaved to much wine, teaching what is good, 4 so that they may [b]encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, beingsubject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored." ?If anyone around us is struggling more than we are in any given area, are they 'older' or 'younger' than we are *in that area*? How does this next passage fit in with that?)
Mark 9:42-50 42 “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe to stumble, it would be better for him if, with a heavy millstone hung around his neck, he had been cast into the sea. 43 If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire,44 [where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 45 If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell, 46 [where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.] 47 If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell,48 where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.
49 “For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but if the salt becomes unsalty, with what will you make it salty again? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.”
THANKSGIVING & PEACE throughout days of persevering - when facing uncertainties of life here on earth.....
II Peter 2:10-14 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and [b]its works will be [c]burned up.
11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. -- 14 Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless, 15 and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, 16 as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as they do also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction. 17 You therefore,beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness, 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
AND AGAIN:
THANKSGIVING AND PEACE THAT WE ARE THE CHILDREN OF GOD!!!
Matthew 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
(Question: Are *you* each certain that you are a child of God - today? For those of us who are certain: Do we know all we should know about being peacemakers? How can we be peacemakers if we are not walking in peace ourselves? Where does peace begin in our lives? How do we grow in peace? How does that relate to the command to 'be filled with the Spirit' - Ephesians 5:18?)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
